Playing an Ogre Basics

Ogres are somewhat unique amoung the monster races as we do not have 1 defining feature that makes us identifiable, we have a conglomerate of little clues that when put together make us identifiable. This allows for alot of individuality in our kits. We are elemental in that we were made from the elements, and often have an affinity to one element in particular. Our god was the god of the earth as a whole, and he made us of its stuff and created our souls. After he died we were gifted with the 4 gods made from his spirit. More on that in another post. It would be easy based off of this description to think that we are peaceful “hippie” creatures. This is absolutely not the case. We are not “noble savages.” Remember we are Monsters, we make war, we eat meat, we take what we want from our surroundings, as such is our birthright. We were made to be the dominant force in the world, and all other races are usurpers. We like to use simple tools as weapons (axes, clubs, long knives, spears) which are easily mended or replaced. Ogres are like dogs in our diet, we rely on a lot of meat, but can consume vegetables and fruit as well. An ogre cannot thrive without meat as a protein source.

An easy metric to remember is if a goblin has a defining characteristic, the accompanying ogre characteristic will be opposed to it. We are long lived, to a goblin’s short life. We are wise to their silliness. We are large and strong and hearty, while they are small, often gangly, and would rather die and be reborn whole, than linger with an injury. An orc and an ogre may be of similar builds, an ogre will be in general reserved off the field of battle, but on take on a commanding presence on field, whereas an ork will often be brash and loud all the time.

Within the lore, Ogres are a dark brown, however we do not paint up for several reasons. 1. Brown face is not cool, and really not particularly necessary. 2. Ogres almost universally use warpaint, meaning a significant amount of visible skin is covered anyway. Over time Ogres will settle on a set style/pattern for their warpaint. This is unique to the ogre, and an identifying trait. Your warpaint is almost like a finger print. Young/new ogres will often go through a period of time discovering what they want the paint to be, so don’t feel like you need to know right away. Traditionally black, red, and white paint are used, with black being the predominant one. There are runes, symbols and other marks of cultural significance which can be incorporated but that is not required.

Traditionally on the field ogres keep their shoulders bare, and utilize fur and leather throughout their garb. Their clothing is also typically simplistic with little decoration except those used for ceremonial purposes. Crudely prepared furs, leathers, rough spun fabric - anything that is travel tested and weather resistant. Ogres often wear multiple layers, andThey will often wear colors indicative of where they come from so as to blend in with their surroundings. Ogres traditionally wear mostly earth colors but as long as you have a good reason for what you wear this is just tradition, not hard and fast rules. Water affiliated ogres will often incorporate blues, and Fire affiliated ogres will often incorporate reds. Earth affiliated, greens/browns, and wind affiliated grey/black or dark purple. Ogres often wear their garb in layers/accessories, patches, layers, holes, are all completely acceptable. Ogres often have big belts with many things attached to them, we are nomadic in the lore, so we like to have pouches and wraps to carry things. Ogres also often cover the forehead and utilize braids. Within the Lore male ogres have horns, and female ogres have 2 bony plates, but these are not used on the field for obvious reasons. Some ceremonial or feast garb will incorporate them though. As an aside Ogres often bare their shoulders as a sign of strength, the Thorogonya ogres often had elaborate gut belts also as a sign of prowess. Keep in mind, who you are out of character can be much different than who you are in Character. You can be a vegan in real life and play an ogre. The difference is you could not be a vegan ogre. When you roleplay you are pretending to be something you are not. It does not need to reflect on who you are in real life, though oftentimes there are carryovers. Many people choose to play ogres because of build or personality that fit well within the descriptions of them.

Dressing and acting the part is key. Determine which element you feel most drawn too, you may be drawn to multiple. Most of us have a primary with lesser ties to the others. Dress accordingly, and use facepaint when on the field. You don’t have to be part of a tribe, it is perfectly fine and expected for ogres to wander alone for a while.

Reach out to an established ogre. They can help give you tips on garb/characterization, and introduce you to other ogres you may not know. In general it is best to be referential to the Lore as it exists when you are just starting out, as you become more comfortable playing an ogre you find/see the ways you can fit in your own tweaks and individuality. In general I would not recommend trying to come in and do something really different in the beginning. Figure out who you are as an ogre first. This is just based on my years in the sport watching as people try to get things going, especially new things. I will use a plant analogy. Get your roots in, then bloom into the crazy creative individual ogre that you are.

Creating your Backstory

These are some questions and points you can think about when defining your character and backstory as an ogre. Backstory can really help drive your actions when role playing as well as how you build your kit. Having ties to real life history can really help shape a good backstory. It does not need to be something you ever write down, though you absolutely could. It can be something you share openly, or keep private, but either way I highly recommend you think about it. This can be said for all races as well, but this post will focus on ogres specifically.

Story

What has drawn you to ogredom, what about it resonates with you?

Has someone or something in general inspired you?

How will you portray yourself, how will people know you are an ogre?

Did you always feel drawn to ogredom, or is it something that you have recently discovered? Do you have a history in the sport you want to bring along with you into ogredom, or are you starting fresh?

There are no right and wrong answers, there is what is true for you and what you want to get out of playing an ogre.

Your Element/god

Ogre children are often born with a set elemental affinity. This can be somewhat determined by their parents affinity, but it can also be completely different depending how the soul formed. This is not the same as being touched, but rather indicates to what element a particular ogre is aligned. Sometimes there are physical indications, such as younglings born with mismatched eyes are claimed by Ucronos and are thought to have fate-seeing powers. Marbanog was the first ogre born with such eyes. Those with black, white, or red eyes are particularly blessed by Ucronos. Ogres who have an affinity to water are often female, and have blue eyes, but there can certainly be male ogres who feel drawn to water. Male and female ogres may be drawn to earth and fire in equal quantities and sometimes they may feel torn between different elements. This is part of the reason for the totem ceremony which we will discuss in greater detail soon. An ogre who comes of age must search within themselves to see where they align. The gods will often give signs from within those elements, and reward prayers/offerings. An ogre will often find it easiest to tap into the blessings of the god to whom their primary elemental affinity lies.

Ogres are elemental and almost all ogres have a primary element, 2 secondary elements and 1 that is less understood. For example I am water aligned, but I have an affinity for wind and earth though to a lesser degree. I have little affinity for fire.

What do you feel most drawn to, why?

If you are unsure look at how you fight or tend to act, are you loud and brash, are you contemplating and a strategist, are you chaotic and unpredictable, are you silent and precise then you might be (fire, earth,water or air respectively)?

Explore any dichotomies, or seeming contradictions, are you loud and brash but also just really drawn to Ucronos/wind, play with that and think about why that might be within the context of your backstory.

Tie these various affinities into your persona, and your garb.

Your personal history in the game

The best personal lore in my opinion usually has links to real life.

Have you always been an ogre, did you play someone or something else?

Are you the same character who has realized they are an ogre, or a completely new ogre? We have a wide mix. We have some who were ogres from the beginning, some who started out as a different race and realized they were an ogre etc. Come up with a reason that makes sense to you and in the lore for why you did not know you were an ogre, or what being an ogre from the beginning was like, did you have a mentor or an inspiration from a different fighter. This is an excellent start to your backstory. I started out as a human, but an influential ogre told me the truth that I really was an ogre, my personal backstory reflects this and why I started out thinking I was a human.

Character death is also a thing. Bhakdar the ogre notably killed and I believe ate Alcon, who was the fighter’s original character.

What do you want to play

Remember this is about fun and enjoyment. Even if in real life you are more stoic, if you want to be a crazy loud Ugangi fanatic go for it. Your RP character does not need to match your real life persona, they can be complete opposites, or very similar. You are in charge of your fate so to speak, the lore, the racial “rules”/guidelines those are just a framework and structure to build around. If you find you do not perfectly fir a mold come up with a good reason that fits within the lore and your backstory for that.

Reach out

If stumped and unsure of what to do, reach out to an established ogre. Even though we play monsters we are nice people and would be happy to help. Ghanima and Sigurd are the current acting Shamans and both love talking lore.

Playing an Ogre who does not follow the Four

There is a great deal of lore about the ogres and the four gods, but of course everyone is free to pursue their own path.

Godless, the Cronon, and the Drot'skum even though they are skisms are not uncanon, in fact it is the exact opposite. All three were created as initial frameworks for ogres who wanted to create outside of the original lore with godless being the most open and least defined. Before, ogres that did not conform were basically completly ignored in the lore. We did not acknowledge them or their work. Creating the godless and other schisms made a space for them to exist in context with everything else while still preserving what Beergarde did.

The Cronon and Drotskum in particular were designed as jumping off points for ways I thought could be cool for other ogres to interact with the main religion. And all three schisms are referenced in the main lore with interactions with important characters. This was done purposefully and carefully to both preserve that which I was given and care deeply about, and broaden opportunities for others should they wish to pursue them.

How it works is there are the unchangables, the core of what Beergaurd did. There is absolutely room, lots in fact to add to the main lore and not damage anything. The unchagables are the gatekeepers. If something someone wants to do breaks one of those then it would get moved over into the godless cannon. It is meant to be a separate sandbox where you don't have to worry about an old crotchety shaman shaking her staff at you and waking up Beergards ghost. It also offers additional RP possibilities between ogres of different beliefs. Like how Lutherans and Catholics hated each other when the Lutherans first split off. It looks empty and uncanon because no one has done anything else with it yet. It is a box with sand, and one little castle that talks about how the original godless warred against the four Urungnar. The rest of the space is open for those who wish to play in it, that is all, and what they do would be recorded by me for posterity within that space.